Spindle locking construction



1 E. L. SCHLAGE 2,847,242

SPINDLE LOCKING CONSTRUCTION Filed Jan. 25, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. 2

INVENTOR. ERNEST L.SCHLAGE Aug. 12, 1958 E. L. SCHLAGE SPINDLE LOCKING CONSTRUCTION 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 25, V 1956 FIG.5

INVENTOR. ERNEST L. SCHLAGE 2,847,242 SPINDLE. LUCKING CONSTRUCTION Ernest L Schlage, Burlingame, Calif., assignor to Schlage Lock Company, a corporation Application January 23, 1956, Serial No. 560,664

2 Claims. (Cl. 292-169) This invention relates to door locks having inner and outer independently operated spindles and especially to improvements in the structure of the outer spindle, the rollback carried thereby and the retractor actuated by the rollback.

In the type of door lock here illustrated there is an inner and an outer independently operated spindle, and each spindle carries a roll back member which engages a retractor. When a spindle is rotated in one direction or another by means of its knob the roll back member imparts movement to the retractor, and as the retractor is connected to a latch bolt, the latch. bolt moves in unison. therewith and is retracted. with. relation to the strike plate in the frame of. the door. A pair of compression springs oppose? retracting movement. of. the retractor and connected latch bolt. These springs serve two functions, first, that of returning the retractor and latch bolt toextencled. position when the knob by which the spindle was rotated is released, and secondly, that oi returning; the spindle with its roll back member and. knob back to normal position.

In a door lock of this type the outer spindle together with. itsknob and roll back member is locked against rtation. by means of a push: button carried by the inner knob. This button: is secured to the outerendof abar which. extends length-wise and; through the. inner spindle. On the inner end! of the bar are two members, first, a latch which; engages the retractor, and secondly, a dog; A spring cooperating with the bar normally maintains the latch and dog in an inoperativeor released position, however, if the button .is manually depressed, the bar together with its latch and dog are moved inwardly to a position where the dog enters a slot in the outer spindle while the latch at. the same time engages the retractor andis. retained thereby. The outer knobwith its spindle and roll: back member is thus dogged or locked against rotation, and will remain locked" against rotation until the latch is released with relation to. the retractor.

Rel'easeof the: push button actuated dogging or locking mechanism is normally accomplished by merely rotating the inner knob as such rotation causes the rollback on the inner spindle to impart retracting movement to the retractor and the moment the retractor has moved oneeighth of an inch: or slightly less, the latch is released and the bar carrying the latch, dogand push button returns to normal inoperative position by the action of the cooperating spring, thus releasing or permitting free rotation of the outer knob and spindle.

It has recently been found that release of the push buttonactuated bar together with its latch and dog can be accomplished by an unauthorized person from the exterior side of the door, when the outer knob and spindle is dogged or locked against rotation, by imparting one or more sharp blows to the outer knob, by means of a rubber-faced hammer or similar implement. To explain just how this can happen it mustbe rememberedthat the compression springs which oppose movement of the retractor and which returns the retractor and connected latchbolt to extended position also functions to maintain the re tractor in contact with the roll back members on the respective spindles, such contact being essential to insure 2,847,242 Patented Aug.v 12, i958 return. of the roll back. members, spindles and. knobs to normal position. Another point to be considered is the fact that these spindles are supported in bearings, and that there is always a slight clearance or play in the bearings, particularly after some wear has taken place. This. clearance or play permits the outer spindle to momentarily assume a slight angle with relation to its longitudinal axis when a sharp blow is imparted to the outer knob, and While the movement of the roll back member at the inner end of the outer spindle when such a blow is imparted.

retractor to transmit a shock wave of. such force as tocause the retractor to move far enough. to releasethe latch on the locking bar, and when the latch is released the entire push button mechanism is. released and returned by spring action to inoperative position, thus undogging the outer spindle and permitting opening of the door by rotation ofthe outer knob.

The object of the present. invention isto prevent such unauthorized unlocking, of the outer spindle by providing" a;- structure which prevents transmission of a shock wave from the outer spindle and roll back to the retractor; to provide a roll back on the outer spindle which is maintained out of contact with the retractor when the spindle is dogged, and further to provide means other than the retractor for restoringv the spindle to normal position where the slot in the spindle will align. and receive the dog when the. latter is moved: to dogging position.

The invention is. shown by way of illustration inthe accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig- 1 is a horizontal longitudinal section of the' door lock. showing the main parts of the mechanism.

. Fig. 2 is. a diagrammatic view showing how a shock wave may impart movement to theretractor.

Fig.3 is2'a cross section on a reducedscale takenon' lineIII -III'of Fig. l=. I

Fig. 4 is a= perspective view partly broken away show ingone: form of retractor.

Fig. 5 is a cross section similar to Fig. 3; but showing" amodification of the retractor and roll back structure;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view ing thetype' of retractor used in Fig. 5; and

Fig 7 is a perspective view of the outer spindle. Referring to the drawings in detail and especially Fig;

'1, 2 indicates the outer spindle with its knob. A, and 3? indicates the inner spindle-with its knob B. Both spindles are of tubular construction as shown in Fig. 71. and both spindles are provided with a roll back member such as.

indicated at 4 and 5. Both of the roll back members are provided for the purpose of imparting retracting,

movement to a retractor generally indicated at 0,, and this is accomplished by rotation of either spindle by means of its knob. During such rotation the roll back engages. a thrust plate 6 on the retractor and forces the retractor as a whole in the direction of arrow a, see Fig.3. and aswhich were compressed during, withdrawal of. the.- latch. bolt willexert their combined pressure on the-thrust plate and thus return the retractor with connectedlatch bolt to normal extended or projected. position, and. will at the.

same time return the roll back members. together with their spindles and knobs to normal position. The operation just described applies to the inner spindle with. its; only, as the roll back on. the: inner" retractor" roll. back and knob spindle is in contact with the thrust platoon the at all times, but it does not apply to the outer spindle partly broken away showwith its roll back and knob as a predetermined clearance is maintained between the roll back and the thrust plate as indicated at 10, see Fig. 3. In the structure shown in Figs. 3 and 4 the clearance is obtained by stepping down a portion of the surface of the thrust plate as indicated at 11, but it may also be accomplished by forming the roll back to provide a space between the roll back and thrust plate as indicated at 12 in Fig. 5, in which case a uniform surface may be presented by the thrust plate as shown at 6 in Fig. 6.

The clearance maintained between the roll back on the outer spindle and the thrust plate is of great importance as it is the means whereby a shock wave is rendered harmless, or in other words, cannot be transmitted to the retractor. For instance, by referring to the diagrammatic view shown in Fig. 2 it will be noted that if the outer knob A is struck a sharp blow in the direction of arrow B, the spindle 2 together with the roll back 4 will assume a slight angle indicated by the line 14 with relation to the longitudinal axis of the spindle, this being particularly true if the bearings 15 and 16 have been subjected to wear. If the roll back is in contact with the thrust plate 6 of the retractor, it is obvious that movement will be transmitted to the retractor, but as a clearance is provided between the roll back and the thrust plate neither movement nor shock wave force can be transmitted.

It has been demonstrated that a shock wave imparted to the spindle and roll back member by striking the outer knob with a rubber-faced hammer may transmit suflicient movement to the retractor to release a dogging mechanism which secures the outer spindle and knob against rotation. The dogging mechanism comprises a dog 17 which is adapted to enter a slot 18 formed in the outer spindle. The dog, see Fig. 1, is formed adjacent the inner end of a bar 19 which extends longitudinally of and through the inner spindle. The bar has a push button 20 on its outer end, and close to the dog 17 is formed a latch 21. The bar 19 which carries the push button, the latch and the dog is normally maintained in the position shown in Fig. 1 where the push button extends outwardly from the face of the inner knob B by means of a spring 22. However, if the button is depressed, dog 17 which is guided by a slot 23 formed in the housing of the lock will enter slot 18 of the outer spindle, and the dog will be retained in this position as latch 21 will engage the inner face of a shoulder 24 formed on the retractor. When the dog is held by the latch, the dog, as already stated, has entered the slot 18, and in this position dogs or locks the outer spindle together with its roll back and knob against rotation. The latch 21 is the only means provided for maintaining the dog in dogging position, hence, the importance of preventing shock wave transmission or movement to the retractor. As previously stated, a one-eighth of an inch movement can readily be transmitted by shock wave transmission, and this is obviously more than suflicient to release latch 21, and when it is released spring 22 will instantly return the push button bar 19 and thus retract the dog from the slot 18 and thereby release the outer spindle to permit free rotation thereof and opening of "a door from the exterior.

From the foregoing it must be apparent that the clearance maintained between the roll back on the outer spindle and the retractor to prevent shock wave transmission or movement to the retractor is important. The clearance may be only one-sixteenth of an inch or less, see Figs. 3 and 5, but even so it leaves the outer knob with its spindle and roll back member free to rotate in either direction until the roll back engages the thrust plate on the retractor. This free rotational movement may be less than 10 degrees in either direct-ion, but is nevertheless suflicient to bring the slot 18 formed in the outer spindle out of alignment with the dog 17, and as such, might prevent depression of the push button when it is desired to dog the outer spindle and knob against rotation. For this 4 reason, means are provided for guiding the dog into the slot or, in other words, aligning the slot with relation to the dog when the spindle and knob is to be locked against rotation.

By referring to Fig. 7, it will be noted that the slot 18 formed in the outer spindle is flared or widened at its inner end to present two angular guide faces such as indicated at 25 and 26. Hence, if the slot is not aligned with the dog when the latter is entering the slot, the dog will engage one or another of the angular faces and rotate the spindle until the slot aligns and the dog enters. When fully entered, latch 21 hooks behind the shoulder 24 of the retractor and the outer spindle and knob is dogged or locked against rotation and will remain so until suflicient movement is transmitted to the retractor to release the latch 21. Obviously, the latch 21 cannot be released by shock wave transmission due to the clearance formed between the roll back on the outer spindle and the thrust plate on the retractor, hence, the only manner in which it can be released is by rotating the inner knob and spindle as such rotation causes the roll back on the inner spindle to engage the thrust plate on the retractor and imparts retracting movement thereto, thereby releasing latch 21 and undogging the outer spindle. In some instances a lock of this character is provided with a key actuated mechanism in the outer knob whereby retracting movement may be imparted to the retractor, but as this does not form an essential part of the present invention, further reference thereto is thought unnecessary.

I claim:

1. In a door lock that includes a retractor connected with a latch bolt and an outer 'knob spindle provided with rollbacks adapted to retract said retractor upon rota-' tion of said outer spindle, spring means urging said retractor toward said rollbacks to a projected position corresponding to the projected position of said bolt, said spindle being formed with a slot opening outwardly of its inner end and adapted to receive an axially movable dog therein for holding said spindle against rotation in a centered position with said 'roll backs spaced from said retractor whereby an impact applied to said spindle is not transmitted to said retractor, said slot being flared at said one end to a width suflicient to receive said dog therein when said spindle is ofiset from said centered position and being formed along its length to a smaller width whereby said spindle is centered by said dog upon such axial movement inwardly of said slot.

2. In a door lock that includes a retractor connected with a latch bolt and inner and outer knob spindles respectively provided with inner and outer rollbacks adapted to retract said retractor upon rotation of said spindles, spring means urging said'retractor to a projected position against said inner rollbacks for centering said inner spindle in a retracted position, said outer spindle being formed with a slot opening axially outwardly of its inner end and adapted to receive an axially movable dog therein for holding said outer spindle in a centered position against rotation, said outer rollbacks being spaced from said retractor when said outer spindle is in said centered position whereby an impact applied to said outer spindle is not transferred to said retractor, said slot being flared at said inner end of said outer spindle to a width suflicient to receive said dog therein when said outer spindle is offset from said centered position and being formed along its length to a smaller width whereby said spindle is centered by said dog upon such axial movement inwardly of said slot.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,038,907 Schlage Apr. 28, 1936 2,217,131 Nilsson Oct. 8, 1940 2,618,955 Cerf Nov. 25, 1952 2,747,907 Golden et al. u May 29, 1956 

